Ministry of Justice
The Ministry of Justice is a major government department, at the heart of the justice system. We work to protect and advance the principles of justice. Our vision is to deliver a world-class justice system that works for everyone in society.
Secretary of State
Robert Buckland
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State
Alex Chalk - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)Lord Wolfson of Tredegar - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Information Resources: Departmental Overview 2019-20: Ministry of Justice - Ministry of Justice Annual Report and Accounts 2019 to 2020 -
Latest News (from Department Twitter Feed)
- 26 Feb 2021, 2:51 p.m.
- TW // sexual abuse Support services like @RapeCrisisEandW are available if you’ve experienced sexual abuse. If you feel at risk of harm, stay at home measures don’t apply. For more info on the types of services you can turn to, visit https://t.co/XoWzLyv9KO #ItStillMatters https://t.co/7dfhODDbXB - Link
- 25 Feb 2021, 12:18 p.m.
- We’re proud of our #HiddenHeroes in the probation service who continue to keep us safe while meeting the challenges brought by COVID. @HMIProbation have rightly praised staff for adapting their vital work during the pandemic to supervise offenders and keep the public safe. https://t.co/4pFctcT1fR https://t.co/pkxMSGMMRW - Link View All Ministry of Justice Tweets
Ministry of Justice Commons Appearances
Oral Answers to Questions is a regularly scheduled appearance where the Secretary of State and junior minister will answer at the Dispatch Box questions from backbench MPs
Other Commons Chamber appearances can be:- Urgent Questions where the Speaker has selected a question to which a Minister must reply that day
- Adjornment Debates a 30 minute debate attended by a Minister that concludes the day in Parliament.
- Oral Statements informing the Commons of a significant development, where backbench MP's can then question the Minister making the statement.
Westminster Hall debates are performed in response to backbench MPs or e-petitions asking for a Minister to address a detailed issue
Written Statements are made when a current event is not sufficiently significant to require an Oral Statement, but the House is required to be informed.
Most Recent Commons Appearances by Category
| Date | Type | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Feb. 02 | Oral Questions | Oral Answers to Questions |
| Nov. 20 | Topical Questions | Topical Questions |
| Jul. 24 | Urgent Questions | Feltham A Young Offenders Institution |
| Feb. 25 | Written Statements | “Closed Material Procedure” Provisions in Justice and Security Act 2013: Statutory Review |
| Jan. 13 | Westminster Hall | War Memorials: Desecration |
| Nov. 24 | Adjournment Debate | HMP Frankland: Covid-19 |
Ministry of Justice - Bills and Acts in the Current Session
A bill to make in relation to marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales provision about divorce, dissolution and separation; and for connected purposes
This Bill received Royal Assent on Thursday 25th June 2020 and was enacted into law.
To require the Parole Board to take into account any failure by a prisoner serving a sentence for unlawful killing or for taking or making an indecent image of a child to disclose information about the victim.
This Bill received Royal Assent on Wednesday 4th November 2020 and was enacted into law.
A Bill to implement the Hague Conventions of 1996, 2005 and 2007 and to provide for the implementation of other international agreements on private international law.
This Bill received Royal Assent on Monday 14th December 2020 and was enacted into law.
A Bill to make provision about the release on licence of offenders convicted of terrorist offences or offences with a terrorist connection; and for connected purposes.
This Bill received Royal Assent on Wednesday 26th February 2020 and was enacted into law.
A bill to give effect to Law Commission recommendations relating to commencement of enactments relating to sentencing law and to make provision for pre-consolidation amendments of sentencing law
This Bill received Royal Assent on Monday 8th June 2020 and was enacted into law.
A Bill to consolidate certain enactments relating to sentencing.
This Bill received Royal Assent on Thursday 22nd October 2020 and was enacted into law.
A Bill to make provision about the sentencing of offenders convicted of terrorism offences, of offences with a terrorist connection or of certain other offences; to make other provision in relation to terrorism; and for connected purposes.
Wednesday 3rd March 2021
Ministry of Justice - Draft Secondary Legislation
| Dates | Department | Title | |
|---|---|---|---|
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Published 8 Jun 2020, 4:23 p.m. |
Ministry of Justice | The Northern Ireland Act 1998 (Section 75 – Designation of Public Authority) Order 2020 | |
| This Order designates the Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens’ Rights Agreements (the “IMA”) for the purposes of section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (c. 47). | |||
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Published 12 Feb 2020, 2:21 p.m. |
Ministry of Justice | The Fatal Accidents Act 1976 (Remedial) Order 2020 | |
| Section 1A of the Fatal Accidents Act 1976 (c.30) (the “Act”) provides for a fixed sum of bereavement damages to be awarded to a limited category of persons in the event of a fatal accident caused by wrongful act, neglect or default. | |||
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Published 20 Jan 2020, 2:09 p.m. |
Ministry of Justice | The Judicial Pensions and Fee-Paid Judges’ Pension Schemes (Contributions) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 | |
| The Judicial Pensions Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/182) (“the 2015 Regulations”) and the Judicial Pensions (Fee-Paid Judges) Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/522) make provision for the contributions payable by members of both schemes constituted by those Regulations. | |||
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Published 15 Oct 2019, 3:57 p.m. |
Ministry of Justice | The Human Rights Act 1998 (Remedial) Order 2019 | |
| This Order amends the Human Rights Act 1998 (“HRA”) to address a finding of the European Court of Human Rights of a breach of Article 13 of the European Convention on Human Rights (“Convention”) in the case of Hammerton v United Kingdom (Application no. 6287/10). | |||
Ministry of Justice - Laid Secondary Legislation
| Dates | Department | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
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Laid 25 Feb 2021 In Force 31 May 2021 |
Ministry of Justice |
Civil Procedure (Amendment No. 2) Rules 2021 Parliamentary Status - Text of Legislation |
Made negative procedure |
| These Rules amend the Civil Procedure Rules 1998 (S.I. 1998/3132). The amendments give effect to, or are consequential upon— | |||
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Laid 25 Feb 2021 In Force 31 May 2021 |
Ministry of Justice |
Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021 Parliamentary Status - Text of Legislation |
Draft affirmative procedure |
| Explanatory text not available | |||
Petitions addressed by Ministry of Justice
| Current Signatures | Final Signatures | Title | Petition Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
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167,506 Petition Closed |
Violet-Grace’s Law - Life sentences for Death by Dangerous Driving Gov Responded - 25 Feb 2019 Debated on - 8 Jul 2019 |
15 Aug 2019 closed 1 year, 6 months ago |
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The men who killed our daughter drove a stolen a car at 83 mph in a 30 mph zone. They killed our 4-year-old daughter Violet-Grace and severely injured her nan, who has life-changing injuries. They will serve less time in prison than Violet was alive. I don’t want other families to suffer like this. |
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115,723 Petition Closed |
People found with a knife to get 10 years and using a knife 25 years in prison. Gov Responded - 14 Mar 2019 Debated on - 25 Mar 2019 |
3 Jun 2019 closed 1 year, 8 months ago |
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People are scared of the amount of knife crime with apparently very little deterent to stop people carrying knifes. |
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Departmental Select Committee
Justice Committee
Commons Select Committees are a formally established cross-party group of backbench MPs tasked with holding a Government department to account.
At any time there will be number of ongoing investigations into the work of the Department, or issues which fall within the oversight of the Department. Witnesses can be summoned from within the Government and outside to assist in these inquiries.
Select Committee findings are reported to the Commons, printed, and published on the Parliament website. The government then usually has 60 days to reply to the committee's recommendations.
11 Members of the Justice Committee
Justice Committee Member since 29 Jan 2020
Justice Committee Member since 2 Mar 2020
Justice Committee Member since 2 Mar 2020
Justice Committee Member since 2 Mar 2020
Justice Committee Member since 2 Mar 2020
Justice Committee Member since 2 Mar 2020
Justice Committee Member since 2 Mar 2020
Justice Committee Member since 2 Mar 2020
Justice Committee Member since 2 Mar 2020
Justice Committee Member since 11 May 2020
Justice Committee Member since 22 Feb 2021
Justice Committee: Upcoming Events
Court Capacity, The Future of Legal Aid
2 Mar 2021, 1:45 p.m.
(at 2:30 pm) Dame Vera Baird DBE QC Victims' Commissioner for England and Wales Penelope Gibbs, Director, Transform Justice Jodie Blackstock, Legal Director, JUSTICE (at 3:30 pm) Nimrod Ben-Cnaan, Head of Policy and Profile, Law Centres Network Jo Underwood, Head of Strategic Litigation, Shelter
View calendar - Save to Calendar
Justice Committee: 9 Current Inquiries
Justice Committee: Previous Inquiries
Ministry of Justice Publications
Most Recent Publications
| Date | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Feb. 26 | Driving economic growth and recovery in the legal sector | News and Communications |
| Feb. 26 | Civil Procedure (Amendment No. 2) Rules 2021 and Practice Direction update 129 | Guidance and Regulation |
| Feb. 26 | Practice Direction update 128: Civil Procedure Rules (OCMC PD 51R) | Guidance and Regulation |
Ministry of Justice Written Questions
Written Questions are submitted by Members of Parliament and the House of Lords to receive information or updates from a Department.
Departments are required to respond in a timely fashion and provide a response or requested information. Written Questions can compel detailed and specific information to be produced, and are frequently used as the source of news stories about the work of a Department.
Latest Written Question
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| 25 Feb 2021, midnight | HM Courts and Tribunals Service: Coronavirus | Baroness Doocey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Question to the Ministry of Justice: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much additional funding has been allocated to the HM Courts and Tribunals Service in response to the COVID-19 pandemic; how any such additional funding has been allocated between (1) criminal court services, (2) civil court services, and (3) tribunal services; and how much of any such funding has been spent in each such area so far. Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice) HM Courts and Tribunals Service has received an additional £150m funding in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic recovery funding covers the provision of additional PPE equipment and cleaning across the HMCTS estate; the provision of additional staffing and judicial resources; the provision of safety and security works; the provision of technology to enable remote hearings, and the provision of additional courtrooms, often referred to as ‘Nightingale Courts’. Where possible, HMCTS has utilised existing baseline budgets to cover COVID-19 requirements. However, the main challenge throughout the pandemic has been the ability to operate the criminal courts, especially the safe and secure operation of Jury trials in a socially distanced environment, resulting in higher levels of expenditure, as outlined within the table below.
The latest reported spend to date as at 31 January 2021, by business area, is set out below.
Continued high levels of COVID-19 response and recovery activity remains in place to enable HMCTS to actively respond to the challenges of delivering a safe and effective service during these challenging times.
These efforts will be bolstered by the £110m being invested into a range of measures to boost court recovery and the £337m Spending Review settlement to deliver speedier justice to convict offenders, support victims, and protect the wider public.
*Multi-jurisdiction & corporate expenditure includes services delivered on a national basis covering several business areas, for which a single jurisdiction is not identifiable within the financial system; examples include additional PPE, some IT costs and telephone conferencing expenditure. |
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